Italies' Story
by Lokiitama
Summary: They would never have guess. But when they think of it, it was perfectly logic. No nation stay pure and innocent after more than 2000 years of living and many wars lived. So why the Italies would be different? They had been tricked, but the feeling they felt wasn't anger against them. It was guilt. Here's what happened to South and North Italy.
1. Chapter 1

**English isn't my mothertongue, don't blame me too much. But point my errors, please, I would be pleased ~**

**Un-beta'd **

**I only own the idea.**

* * *

They landed quietly on the ground. Faces looking grim, and were filled with unbelief and shock. What they had just seen… was it real? It seemed so.

Most of them had participated to their misery. Most of them had red puffy eyes, and transparent wounds called tears strain on their cheeks. Most of them didn't notice anything coming. Most of them couldn't say if England's slip was a good or a bad thing.

Especially Germany. How did he do to not notice? It was worth his tears – he didn't usually cry. Was he really one that contributed to all that 'Ve' ? He wasn't sure he wanted England to slip at first. He always thought that his friend was a little bit simple-minded and that that was charming. And he always thought it would always be like that. He wasn't sure that he wanted it to change, but if it hadn't, what could have possibly happened to his friend…? Was he really just a friend?

The Italies were there, lying on the ground, sleeping. There was no America laughing at how they looked gay, entangled with each others.

There was no England to scold America.

There was no France to try molesting the Italies.

There was no Prussia laughing at how un-awesome they were, unlike him.

There was no Spain to drool over how cute they looked with their curls entangled in a heart-shape.

There was no China to scold France and England's immatureness because they would have gotten in a fight.

There was no Russia smiling, not anymore, he had a heart, too.

There was no Canada crying over his ghostly appearance towards his loud brother.

There was no one doing what they would technically do.

A small yawn escaped both Italies' lips. They were waking up.

Spain smiled a little, approaching Romano.

Germany swallowed his tears back, approaching Veneziano.

The elder yawned again, looking around him. Oh crap, why every nation had to return when they were in such embarrassing clothes? Well, it was his little brother idea; it could be a great excuse since it was what actually happened.

It was Veneziano who wanted to put their old clothes back. From the time they were under domination.

He saw Spain approaching him, and he tried real hard to not show his smile to him.

The Spanish gently took him in his arms, like he was used to do, but before Romano could retort and insult with a blush, the Spaniard whispered softly into his ear. "I'm glad that I could be your angel."

And it quieted South Italy down and widened his eyes instead.

_How did he know?_

The younger yawned again, looking around him. Oh, they were back, he hoped that no one would scold him, it wasn't fun, and it was really embarrassing. Well, at least his big brother was with him, it could mitigate the scolds.

But he would be scolded the most; it was his idea to put back their old clothes. From the time they were under domination.

He saw Germany approaching him, and he tried real hard to not show his scarred heart to him.

The German took him in his arms, it was unusual, and it was usually him who practically jumped into his friend arms. He wanted to ask why he was doing that – it hurt him so much more – but the man whispered softly into his ear. "I'm so sorry that I didn't notice anything."

And it quieted North Italy down and widened his now opened eyes instead.

_How did he know?_

They stayed limp into their arms for some seconds.

Romano returned the hug, tears of joy running down his cheeks.

Veneziano broke down into a sobbing mess trying to stay as little as possible.

Again, no one moved or said anything.

Because they now knew

Because they now knew Italy's real story.

_The Italies' story._

_Are you ready to know the truth?_


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks to everyone that took the time to read the previous chapter, favorite'd, put the story in alert and most of all reviewed!

**Reply-review-time:**

_Guest_: Thanks for reviewing ! Hope you'll enjoy!

_Disclaimer: I own a little Chibitalia-keychain that's so cute, but I do not own Hetalia: Axis Powers! This story is unbeta'd, so if you see any errors, tell me! I own the idea_.

* * *

**_EVERYONE HAS A SCHEME FOR GETTING RICH THAT WILL NOT WORK_**

**_Murphy's law._**

* * *

_Have you ever wondered…_

…How nations came to life?

No one ever saw a nation popping out of nowhere. They aren't born from a human either. It's way more vicious. If you want to find a nation about to breathe for the first time, you'll have to explore the entire recluse corners for a cocoon.

That's right, nation are made into cocoons. Humans are unable to see them, or even touch them by error. Every cocoon had a different color; these colors meant the behavior or the future of a nation. Every single of them had a dark shade, because the story of a nation wasn't all bright and pink. Maybe you will understand with more ease if we give you an example.

When Russia was into his cocoon, the color of it was as dark as charcoal. It meant his future, but when his cocoon opened it was a bright white light, which meant his behavior. You can interpret these colors however you want.

If Russia wasn't found before, it was because… well, who would go into the heart of a constant blizzard?

Nation's cocoons never had been found. But one.

* * *

**ROME – 268 B.C.**

As usual, people were trying to avoid that alleyway; since years – almost ten, now – a big scary thing attached itself in the dead-end. During ten years, some wandering artists made up drawings and poems based on the thing in the alley-way.

_Some years have passed,  
But the thing does not belongs to the past,  
Colored by black spots and fresh blood,  
On the wall, it keeps strongly his hold._

_Breathing, the thing lives,  
Living, the thing scares,  
_

_Will it be Rome's nightmares?_

It was one of the well-known writings about '_it_'. And breathing, the thing did. It breathed; the huge red-black ball – cocoon? – was slowly getting bigger, then smaller. The bullied children that had to touch _it_ because of their bullies could tell you that they felt something beating in a slow-pace inside it. The ones with good eyesight would have told that it was an egg; they could see two forms when sunlight hit the _thing_ strongly.

The _thing_ was alive, and it scared the people away from the road near the alleyway – what kind of monsters could come out of that huge egg?

For ten years, no one dared approach the cocoon.

But everything always comes to an end, doesn't it?

* * *

It was a really cold night, but winter was coming fast, after all.

No one was walking down the road near the alleyway, but who would, anyway? There was barely anyone during day, already. So nobody walked down except for one drunken man. He was young, you could give him 14 or 15 years old, and he had made a big party with his family and friends to celebrate his admission in the high-graded army. Caius was his name.

And so, drunken, he stumbled in the road, and stopped just in front of the 'accursed-alleyway'. As his mind was all fuzzy and dizzy, he took out a little but very sharp knife. Hiccupping one time, he went into the little path. When he was in front of the egg, fear took over his heart, but his drunken mind wasn't making any difference between daring and fearing. He raised his blade, and opened the _thing_ in a swift movement.

He knew what the rumors said, but he didn't expect a warm liquid literally jumping into his face and wetting him all. It only made his fear stronger. Two bodies fell from the slit he made. And the image of two little boys in all their naked glory would be stuck in his head, until his very death.

They were the same, dark brown hair, sun-tanned skin, and as they opened a little their eyes before closing them instantly, he had the time to see four dark-brown orbs. The only detail that was different was the distinctive curls popping out of their head. For one, it was going up, somewhat localized on his forehead, and for the other, it was going down, somewhat localized near his left ear.

Caius screamed before drunkenly running away.

The poor guy would never know that he just gave a premature birth to two twins nation. They didn't have to do anything at that time, yet. And thus began the life of the Italies brothers.

Shivering from the cold, they entangled themselves together, trying to be one with the ground, where the warm liquid was dripping. But as the minutes passed, the pavement began to be as cold as ice.

Once again, they opened their eyes, and, for the very first time, they saw each other. Both of them were skinny, and thus, they could feel each other's heart. They were beating in sync.

Soon, they feel asleep, exhausted.

* * *

The sun warmed a little Rome, and soon, sunlight passed through a window from a random house in Rome. In that house was living another man, but this one do not held a big role… more or less. Let's say that he does not appear for a long time. That man was poor. He had lost all his money by playing games and was indebted.

Fortunately, he had found two little boys in that cursed alleyway – he had thought that if he killed the _thing_ he could gain money and pay his debt with it. It seemed that Hermes – God of Luck – decided to smile down to him. So he took them home.

"My, my, you're awake, now?" The man chuckled as he saw two pairs or dark-brown eyes fear-stricken looking back at him.

Somehow, the two boys had understood what he had said, but they didn't know how to speak. And they had a gut-feeling telling them that this guy wasn't going to adopt them and raise them with love and care. They gulped down with difficulty.

The man's smile morphed into a disgusting smirk as he continued to speak. " So, I suppose that you have names ?" He walked towards the two boys, who slowly backed away, only for their back to hit the wall.

As no answer was said, the man's smirk progressively fell down. He raised an eyebrow as his eyes darkened into anger. "So? What are your names?"

Once again, the two little boys didn't answer.

The man didn't like that one bit. Out of anger, he decided to forget about good-manners and grabbed violently the twin with the curl upward. He maintained him by a fierce hold on his hair and checked his body out; after all, the better was the objects to trade, the more he gained money. And since they were twins he only needed to examine one.

To say so, even if the boy was skinny, he was pretty good looking. By chance, he would have at least 50 to 175 gold for each twin. He would become rich and famous! Unknown poets would write something about him! How great! To say that his debt was about 85 silver, taking into account that 100 silver meant 1 gold.

Plus! They were like each other contrary; one looked rebellious with his curl going up, and the other one looked docile with his curl going down.

The only bad thing about them was their voice. It could diminish the price. It was obvious that with that kind of juvenile bodies, they wouldn't be sold to only scrub the bathrooms. And many of the perverts around here liked to hear screams. Being mute would diminish the price.

Out of curiosity, the man touched the curl of the docile one- the one with the curl downward - and, to his surprise, he blushed suddenly, and a little moan came out of his throat. To check, he touched the rebellious' one and he had the same reaction.

So they weren't mute! And these voices! It was like angels'. It would certainly please whoever wanted to buy them. But it was sure that they would be expensive.

"So! What are your names?" He asked, happy again. They didn't voice anything. "Okay, then! If you don't want to tell me your stupid names, I'll simply give some to you!"

He thought for a moment, before grinning like a mad man. He suddenly pointed the docile one. "You'll be Felix! It means happiness, and since you're going to give me money, you'll make my happiness! And you-!" He pointed the rebellious one. "You'll be Vinum! It means wine, and from money, wine will be my happiness!"

He insanely giggled to himself before skipping away; making sure that the room was locked.

* * *

Some days had passed while the twin where still in that room. They were poorly fed and their stomach voiced out loud these thoughts. During these few days, the brothers had the time to observe the man, since the later sometimes suddenly broke in the room, looking panicked, before sighing in contentment once he saw them.

First of all, he was really easy to anger; if they dared move or anything, his eyes morphed into dark orbs, his posture changed into an aggressive one - as if he was about to jump on you. They didn't learn his name, tough.

That day, once again, he busted from the door, but, strangely, he didn't look panicked or anything. He looked quite calm and... dangerous. Yes, dangerous. Smirking, he took out a rope and tied them both by the wrist.

He looked pretty happy, and oddly, the twins felt that his happiness was based on their misfortune, which was coming faster and faster to hit them in the face. The man put some collar around their neck, and attached to them was wrote their names.

"Today's the day! I won't be in debt anymore!"

They pulled slightly on the rope, testing its resistance, as the man rushed out of the room, taking the other end of the rope - and by that drawing the brothers with him.

Soon, they began to walk down the market place, and to their astonishment, they saw people being sold. Unconsciously, they knew that they would be sold, too. Something in them screamed to run away as fast as possible. They tried to pull their hands out of the rope, but it was strongly tied.

"Stop that, you money!" The man growled.

They gulped down, suddenly trembling in fear. It was sure; they were going to be sold. _Vinum_ looked around him as _Felix _stared at their tied hands, trying to burn it with his eyes. He noticed a big ugly man looking at some people that were sold. The fat man had a strange glint in his eyes, as he stared at a pretty woman who seemed to be forced to dance. It made him shudder in horror.

Slowly, _Vinum_'s eyes looked up –since it seemed that they were going there- and saw the name of the shop.

"_Marcus' slaves' shop  
Best Quality you've ever seen!"_

His dark-brown orbs shot back to the fat man, and he identified the glint his eyes. It was lust. He gulped down and quickly looked around him, trying to find a solution to untie them. His eyes fell on his brother, who was now staring at him.

Comprehension flowed right through his eyes and-with a nod- he pointed from his nose a soldier. The said man was wearing his uniform, which meant that, hanging at his belt was a sword.

In a few meters, they would be in front of the slave's shop, and just next to the soldier.

_Five meters._

Apprehension slowly made its way up their stomachs and heart.

_Four meters._

As it was now pulsing through their veins, theirs pupils retracted.

_Three meters._

Adrenaline rushed to their brains.

_Two meters._

Their breath increased.

_One meter._

Sweat formed in their hands.

And for the first time of his long, long life, _Vinum _grabbed a sword and made it dance around, cutting straight the tie. They ran away, throwing the sword on the ground.

The man that was holding it stumbled forward, involuntary bumping hard into the fat man with the eyes full of lust. The later – clothed only in white and gold, it seemed – turned around to see the peasant that _dared _touch his precious-self. His angry frown deformed into angry disgust, and he snapped his fingers. The soldier – that was still wondering how his sword has been stole – took his weapon back, and approached his employer.

"Kill that disgusting flea."

As much as he hated doing that, the soldier executed the indebted man.

* * *

They panted, taking as much oxygen as possible. They were lying against a wall, somewhere in the town, but not so far from the market.

_That was close_. They both thought.

They hugged themselves for reassurance, breathing deeply. Numbness began to submerge them, reducing their mind to total darkness. Adrenaline began to leave them, and sleepiness took over. But they knew they couldn't sleep here; it was too dangerous, too close from that market. They stood up, their legs shaking, and slowly made their way to the end of the alleyway.

Too bad. It was a dead-end.

Fortunately, even if the situation was bad, they could hide behind some boxes to sleep a little.

_But things usually go from bad to worse, doesn't they?_


	3. Chapter 3

_Hi guys ! Here's Italies' Story Chapter 3, sorry if I'm a bit late. It was harder to write than expected._

**Disclaimer : I don't own Hetalia, but I do own Italies' Story**

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_**IF ANYTHING CAN GO WRONG, IT WILL**_

**Murphy's laws**

* * *

They were on a stage.

They had been taken not long after they'd fell asleep. This time, it was another man, but this one was way nicer… strangely, his eyes were always sad, like he was always mourning over something. He had given them better clothes, and they were much more comfortable that the ones they had before – less itchy.

_Mud…_

They watched the daily routine of the city, busy with selling, washing, talking and laughter. They watched the riches looking thoroughly for new slaves, buying them, and taking them home while they were dragged on the dirty ground. If they had learned something these past days, it was the way the slaves were treated.

To the Romans, they were just objects, and thus were treated mercilessly.

_Sand…  
Water…  
_

Since they were on a stage, they could see a bit further, where houses were being built, blocks were stacked one on another, with yellow powder mixed with water in-between, to assure the solidity. Even if they were far away, they could easily notice that on the construction site were only men, since they were all half-naked.

And they frankly doubted that they were freemen. If you have slaves, why would you need to work by yourself, after all?

_Straw…_

In front of their stand was a stable, a man, equipped with something trident-like, was cleaning the horses' box. He too, was a slave. There were slaves everywhere, and like this guy, none of them were rebelling, why so? They didn't know. They didn't know at all. They continued to watch the slave work in the stable, flinching when another man punched him, yelling.

"_Faster!_ These stable needs to be squeaky clean, how do you want people to rent my merchandise if the place is messy? I sell horses, not pigs! Do you want me to sell you?"

It was easy to see that, yes, the slave did want his master to sell him.

Their eyes travelled toward the other slaves' shop, some were practically prostituting themselves to be bought. Why… didn't they just rebel? They saw two men, walking down the street, laughing together. One was obviously rich, and the other was obviously freshly-bought. Buyers weren't all that bad, were they?

"How much for that one?" A man asked, pointing one of the twins. Both jumped in surprise, their eyes darting toward the man who just talked. Vinum shivered, and Felix gulped down. They weren't going to be separated, were they? Were they? Especially if it was by that pig! They clenched their hands together.

"Sorry, sir. They're a pair." Relief washed over them, but they still held a grudge against that fatty pork. The said fatty pork was holding one of his potty fingers near his chin, as he was thinking about what to do.

_Mud… And lift_

Today was his one-slave-buying day, and when he had walked in front of this delicious piece of merchandise, he just knew that this one would be his new favorite at nighttime. He just had to look at its eyes, its curl, its hips, his legs, hell, even its arms.

It was an object that you encountered once in a lifetime. The other twin was pretty arousing, too. But he liked the rebellious one more, and the one with the curl downward seemed way too docile for his pointy taste.

His lips morphed into a disgusting smirk. The docile one could have other utilities, and that curl would be easy to cut – it was just a stupid curl, anyway.

And if he didn't do well with the chores, it will be one night in his bed before going back on the Slave's market – and it would have his mark on itself.

"How much?"

"Two hundred gold." Darn, they were expensive.

The docile one better fits to its job if it wanted to stay with its brother. He paid the slave seller, who took both of the children, lifted them up, and put them on the muddy ground.

_Sand… And pull_

"…Sorry, I wished you never had this kind of life…" The seller whispered to them, his face even sadder. They just nodded; the sentence itself was scaring them. They didn't know why though.

He handcuffed them with shackles – to ensure that they weren't going to escape, and that fact itself saddened him even more - and gave reticently the chain to the buyer against his filthy money. Why did his father had to start a Slave's seller career and succeed at it? And why did he gave his commerce to his son, that couldn't bear the thought of buying _people ?_

As he heart cried over his monstrousness, the seller watched the twin go, both of them visibly scared of their 'owner'.

That night, after hours of thinking, the seller sneaked into his own house, and within the grim atmosphere of his slave corridor he opened all of the 'cells', saying, joyfully, 'Free, you're free everyone! Get out, build your life!'

He never felt so... so... complete. He had done something he was proud of. He loved it when people cried in relief, thanking him without being able to stop. All of them were out of the house the following day. Except for a beautiful girl.

Soon after, love rushed between them, and they got married. He repeated the freeing every three months.

Unfortunately, he didn't know that the little twin boys he had sell were going to have a hell of a life.

* * *

The man that had bought them was walking quite fast for the kilos he had, and was pulling way too hard on the chain painfully linked to the twins' wrists. And it was even harder to walk properly as they tried to keep their distances - that pig was dangerous, they knew that.

Their little feet couldn't keep up with the huge steps the owner took.

Soon, they tripped, falling flat into the sand with a quiet 'thud', making the pig stop right in his tracks. He turned around and ran to Vinum checking if it was still perfect – and using the 'are you okay' technique to grab some parts of its body he liked, like his bum, his head, and his legs – the little boy jumped away, more than scared – where did that pig was touching him? – and the owner took that jump as a 'Stop, not now, later'.

He then turned to Felix, an angry stare directed right at the cowering and 'docile' one. "This is not a good start with me, you filthy little, pathetic thing. You better behave and obey my every command if you don't want to be sold away from your brother." He yelled at Felix, as it slowly crawled toward his brother in fear. They would stay together, wouldn't they?

They were scared for each other; when Vinum had been touched by the pig, Felix had felt it, and shared the same anxiety toward the pig's motivation to buy them, and they felt utterly scared when he threatened the 'docile' one from parting them away.

_Water… And raise up._

They began to walk once again, one happy of his purchase, two shaking by each other side. After some undying minutes, they finally arrived to the huge house, the garden was truly beautiful, they felt in security, there. Maybe it was Mother Nature herself that was posing her gentle but crying eyes on them.

As they turned their heads from left to right and from the sky to the ground, their breathe were sucked away when their eyes fell onto the said crying Mother Nature.

A frail young woman stood, gardening scissors in hand, staring at them, eyes wide. And these eyes! The most beautiful shade of green they ever saw. Her look and posture showed how caring she was, and the little bump her tummy was forming made her even more loveable. Her hair was neatly braided and fell gently on her shoulder.

Both of them suddenly felt very self-conscious; their clothes were muddy – since they fell – and they would have to scrub their skin really hard to make it as white and smooth as her.

* * *

When they entered the house, they were left speechless. It was as neat and clean that the garden, but it had a reverse feeling. Everything was cold, unforgiving. They could almost see little stars twinkling to show how cleaned this place was. There was marble everywhere, but they wouldn't put their feet on it.

The owner yelled a name, and less than two seconds, a strong woman arrived, and began o get angry at them all. "How dare you came in here with these muddy foot!" She began to talk with a very thick accent, and from the way she chose her words, she was obviously not from here.

The pig was apparently already used to it as he washed his feet into a bucket of water, near the entrance of the mansion. But the woman fetched the twins away, to the owner's dismay, and carried them in a not-so-comfortable way to the bathroom.

Water was spread on them as they closed their eyes, bracing themselves for the impact; she began to pass a brush on their back. It was a little bit hurtful, but they didn't say anything.

The woman sighed, they were still so young. She really hoped that they would die soon, in order to not suffer. Growing in this kind of environment wasn't good for a child health, it wasn't good at all. She would ask the gardener to raise them up. She was the most gentle person around here, and she would comfort these two little boys when they would be on the verge of breaking down, which could be very soon – less than a week, maybe?

They were so small… She would ask their master to not touch them before… before one week at least. She couldn't do more; he was quite an impatient man.

_Staw…_

She was a little bit happy for them; they had been well-treated, in their slaves shop. It wasn't like in her's. They hadn't food in days; it was freedom, to be bought. Here, she could see that their seller was caring enough to let them have a kind of bed: straw.

"_Faster!_ I have to make them clothes!"

"Shut up! They're messy!"

They listened to their discussion, as two men entered the bathroom* they looked a little bit surprised about two newbies, usually, the Master only bought one slave a month – and sold another one if the newbought was quite expensive.

The two kids titled their head on their side at the two other slaves, curious. One of them approached them – he was smelling quite bad, but they could see sweat pearling on his skin, he must have worked really hard – smiling a little, even if his tired traits were far from hidden.

He put his hand on Felix's head, patting it a little – to the strong woman dismay, she would have to wash his hair, too - and began to talk: "So, kids, do you want one of us to show you around, after the bath?"

The other man just nodded, apparently concentrating on something – they couldn't really see what because of the steam, but he was obviously in pain.

The twin looked at each other, before looking at the sweaty man, and nodding.

"Great, just let that witch wash you! We'll go after every one of us is freed from dust, mud, blood and sweat."

_With the sting of the whip on my shoulder__  
__With the salt of my sweat on my brow_

The man smiled one last time before going to his friend. They began to talk about something, slowly, as they were comforting each other. The sweaty man quickly washed himself, under the stormy stare of the 'witch' – witch which was pretty gentle, but they guessed that they were just teasing, there was no real harm held in these words – and then turned around, to the other.

He had talked about blood, why?

"Here, let me help you, buddy… You refused again?"

Again, he just nodded, as he was scared of talking. The steam vanished a little, letting the twin see the not talking man. He too, was really beautiful, like a woman, his skin was tanned – a little bit more than theirs. It was obvious that he was scared, but his eyes held a pride, an undying pride. For a strange reason, Vinum and Felix felt respect toward him.

He had a strong will. But what had he refused? The silent man began to whisper something, it was barely audible, but all of them managed to catch his chant.

"_Elohim, God on high… Can you hear your people cry:"_

The once sweaty man began to wash the other's back, completing the chant. "_Help us now__  
__This dark hour..."_The woman looked at the twin, now washing Felix – a weird woman was taking Vinum's size -, and eventually saw how much they would have cost. They would have cost a lot.

Maybe… "Maybe you can _deliver us_?"

The men turned around, still chanting. "_Hear our call"_ They smiled, nodding.

Being a slave in this mansion wasn't an easy task. There were two categories, the chores-worker and the night-worker – they were usually called Workers and Lovers, due to their categories. Usually, the chore-workers were bought with a night-worker, either because one of the chore-worker was dead, either because they were a pair.

If one of the workers did a 'bad' thing, he would get whipped. If one of the lovers refused to go to bed with the Master and was bought in 'pair', both of the lover and worker would be whipped.

But when the Master bought pairs, especially if the pair was truly beautiful, he would sell some other slaves, to be sure to have money. And here, they couldn't tell if

"By being a pair, they will _Deliver us_, won't they?"

The men nodded, finishing their chant.

"_This dark hour…"_

The twin tilted their heads once again. It was a beautiful but desperate chant to whoever their gods were. They really hoped their pray would be heard.

_Deliver us  
Hear our call_

The strong woman finished washing Felix, throwing some water on his head. Before letting the tailor doing her job. After some minutes, they were dressed up – the woman had guessed who was the worker and who was the lover, she was experimented in that kind of judgment, since she had worked for years under the pig's domination.

"I think they're the very first twins around here, aren't they?" The elder slaves nodded, deep in thought.

"Ready little ones?" The men stood up, smiling – the silent one was… still not talking but seemed quite refreshed.

The once sweaty slave was now in an outfit showing the same colors as Felix's – yellow and black – and the androgyny one was the same as Vinum's – Only yellow – "We'll begin with the kitchen! Because, after all, it's the most important room!" He laughed

Two minutes later, they arrived and looked in awe as all the people – in yellow and black – busied themselves with pots and food.

The beautiful lady they'd met in the garden came, herbs in her arms, calling for someone. As she passed the salad to a cook, she looked down to the twins.

Her gaze softened instantly, she put her hands on their heads, gently asking: "Hello you two. Mind if I ask who you are?"

They were left speechless for an awkward second. When reality sat back in, they pointed each other, stuttering in the same voice of bewilderment "V-Vinum" "F-Felix"

"Aaaw, you're so cute together." The girl cooed, making both of them blush. They had spoken their very first word to the most beautiful lady they ever seen. "How old are you?"

How old were they? They made a pout as they thought about it. They then held 3 fingers up, each. They were six. They had six days. But the beautiful lady chuckled, thinking that they were three. No one could blame her, tough; they looked like thee-years-old.

A man all in black entered the kitchen, and with a baritone voice said : "Worker Pomus." The sweaty slave stopped right in his tracks, gulping down. "Your partner refused. You shall accompany me." The handsome man flinched, a put a hand on his friend's shoulder. 'Sorry', he mouthed, and, even if it was barely audible, he began to chant again, as his friend got away.

He tapped Vinum on the shoulder, and made a sign of the hand, letting him know that he had to follow him. Both of the twin and the pretty lady caught up with the lover, who had began to walk away, taking the same direction as the guy in black.

As the corridors slowly became colder and colder, unknown screams were becoming louder and louder, making the four slaves shiver in worry – and fright for the twins. They couldn't use themselves to these screams. It has been months, since they had heard their first one – or made their first one – but it was so… bone chilling.

_Deliver Us  
Lord of all  
Remember us here in this burning sand_

Whipping sounds were heard, and the boys easily guessed what the screams were caused by. Both of their mouths were opening and closing, like a gaping fish, as they didn't know what to say. Not that they could formulate a sentence for that matter.

The gruesome sound of the whip against the flesh stopped, making them hope it was over for the man inside. But the pretty man and the pretty woman knew better. They knew better than hoping in this place. It wasn't a place for hope – but, once again, they couldn't bring themselves to stop hoping.

A loud splash resonated in their ears, but strangely, there was no screams. And the silence itself gave goose bump to the boys. "W-Wha… Whaa?" Felix tried to speak, ask what was happening, only for him to be interrupted by the woman's finger against his lips. "Shh, be quiet Vinum. We'll explain to you later." The docile twin was so scared and confused that he did not notice the lady's mistake on his name.

They quietly exited the cold and cruel corridor, and once in the entrance hall, the quiet man asked Vinum to come with him, and the pretty girl did the same with Felix. But they did not want to. They held hands, seemingly more scared than before. They wanted them to part away, after what they had showed them? Never! The adults sighed, before leading the children to the garden, the only place in this house that made everyone comfortable and safe.

"Felix-"She began, before being interrupted by the man who quietly corrected her, "Sorry, Vinum. You're a lover. You have to satisfy the master's… hunger." He tilted his head on the side, not understanding, if he wanted to eat, why didn't he go to the kitchen? And why was there someone screaming in the basement? "What I mean is…"

She made a face, thinking of the way to say it; he was just a little kid, after all. He just had grown out of the 'baby' title.

The quiet man had enough; they were going to live here, weren't they? Why was she trying to smooth the truth, when it was so cruel? He decided to be blunt. "You have to fuck with him, and if you refuse – well, if you manage to, before he rapes you – you and your brother will be whipped. The screams were my partner's."

They were obviously shocked beyond possible. While Vinum wildly wondered why the world held this kind of humans, Felix was even more scared for his brother. But the man wasn't finished. "The splashing sound was the 'cleaning'. When your back gets too bloody, they throw salted water on it."

_Deliver Us  
There's a land you promised us._

The woman sighed, visibly frustrated. They only were kids, for the Gods' sake. But she continued. "Felix, you're a worker. You're supposed to tidy up the house, and if you break one rule – even the littlest – you'll receive a basis of fifteen whiplashes."

Now, the boy was even more scared. What was this place? Why did it have to be so hurtful? Wasn't it cruel? Did they have the right? Would his brother be safe? His brother! "V-Vi-Vinium, too?" She shook her head; the damages on the lovers were kept at a 'minimum'. The reply itself relieved Felix, but made the little lover upset. How comes that the worker were disadvantaged? Why were they whipped much more than the others? Why were there whipped at all? He realized something and gently grabbed the pretty woman's dress.

"Y-You worker?" He asked, trying to articulate, not quite used to talking. "No… No I'm not. For the moment, I'm both, my partner died months ago" She remembered quite well, seven months ago. "The Master didn't assign me another partner… He was the gardener…" A tear fell down her cheek. He wasn't only her co-worker. He was also her… her little angel's dad, she thought sadly, gently caressing her pregnant tummy. The Dominus had killed her partner out of anger when he learned about it, he also forced her to 'pass the night' with him, under her loved one's dead eyes.

She hiccupped out of sadness, and the man took her in his arms, supporting her. "My people are also enslaved, from the land we come. But we believe that our God is creating a new land, only for us to live. I can sense that you've got strong wills, maybe you'll be able to _Deliver us, to the promised land_" He said.

* * *

Slowly, the week passed, Vinum's was still conserved, thanks to the strong woman who had washed them, and Felix was assigned to the marble entrance – one of the hardest jobs, since it was constantly full of mud or dirtiness. Now, he understood why the woman was that angry when they came in, it was really hard to clean behind the persons coming from the outside, especially if they didn't care about his work.

And that very day, it would be a first time for both of them.

The day wasn't really different from the other; he was hard-working, as always, and Vinum was few meters away to help him– something like two meters away. Still, they were wary of so much distance between them. Both of them were wiping the floor when the Hebrew man – the sweaty one that got tortured – entered the house, and weakly smiled to the boys, washing his feet out of respect for their work.

"You okay?" They had asked, and he had nodded. But it was a lie; even a deeply retarded person could see he was lying. He was not okay: over the day, he had drastically paled, and his bones were showing off. He was over-working himself.

As he took the direction toward the bathroom to wash away his sweat – they had learned he was building a house as big as this one – he stumbled over, blacking out for a moment. Felix was unfortunately pushed on the side while Vinum served as a cushion. A crashing sound was heard, but none of them cared – except for the shadow lurking over the docile's misfortune.

"You okay? You okay?" They repeated frantically when the man woke up after some seconds. He blinked before smiling sheepishly to the boys, excusing him. He stood up and shakily made his way to the bathroom. Worried, the twins only resumed their activities once he was out of sight. But as as soon as he was away, their fortune ended.

"Worker Felix." The boys turned around to see the man in black behind them. The same one that had called the sweaty man, when they were in the kitchen. They were suddenly even more worried, and a little bit of fear appeared. "By breaking that Vase, you also broke a rule; no worker has the right to break anything, or this'll be twice the amount of pain." Their head snapped to the broken vase, lying in ashes on the floor, they gulped down. Before they knew what was happening, Felix was snatched away.

Vinum fell to his knees, heart beating faster and faster. It was hurtful, more and more hurtful. His precious twin brother was away. Too far away. He couldn't move. He was scared. What would happen to his brother? He didn't want him to scream like the man did. He didn't want him to be hurt.

His brother was away. His brother was away. His brother was away. His brother was away. He was away. He was away. His brother. His brother. His brother. His bro-

A sudden pain startled him, it felt like someone was deeply digging his nails into his back and was drawing gruesome pictures in it, in a too fast frequency to be human. He only managed to whimper. Somehow, he felt that it was a little bit of his brother's pain. What was happening to Felix? He wanted his brother. He wanted his twin!

"Hello" Vinum looked behind him to see the pig. The man touched him, letting his hand going down, where the boy didn't want it to go. He weakly shook his head, but the Dominus continued, deciding to take him to his room. It was time to claim his possession.

He didn't want to! His brother was away, his heart was crawling under terror and aching tremors, his back was being scratched to death and a filthy pig was touching him where he didn't want to. He shook his head once again, closing his eyes. If he wasn't seeing the pig, he couldn't be here anymore. He would disappear, right?

He was thrown on a bed, on which he had bounced – it could have been fun if the situation didn't scare him so much and that his brother was next to him – he kept his eyes closed shut not wanting to see nor feel anything. But he felt something. Something warm, and disgustingly wet lapping against his neck. He shivered. He hated that feeling. "Let yourself go, I'll make you feel good."

He had all the difficulties in the world to breathe; he was scared beyond possible, he desperately tried to push the man away but his arms were too weak. He shook his head, but the man didn't stop. As tears made their way to his eyes, he let his head fall on the bed. It was over. He couldn't do anything.

The man smirked as his new playtoy submitted to him, he would have his fun, now. And he was sure it would be even greater with this little thing – it was certain to be nice and tight. He cupped the slave's cheek, disgustingly rubbing his fingers against it. After some seconds, his hand travelled south, and by adding pressure on his chest – even if it was really small – Vinum began to pant. The Dominus suddenly had a great idea; he would check its mouth to see if that hole could be pleasant, too.

He put a finger against its lips – they were soft – and pushed down, entering the mouth.

What he didn't expect was the whipping the other twin endured had just stopped, freeing Vinum's back from the pain, letting him move with more energy. The rebel kid bit down on the man's finger, making him outrageously yell in pain – and angriness.

To his surprise and relief, the Master stormed out of the room. Wherever he went, the little slave didn't care, the pig was away, and it was the most important. His head lolled to the side, like a broken doll's one, suddenly tired. The scare and the adrenaline were rushing out of his brain – well, the fear was still there somehow –making him tired. But just as he was about to doze off, the pig came back, grabbed him by the waist and flew out of the room.

* * *

"Five more, kiddo" And the unforgiving whip bit five times more, drawing five broken screams out of his burning throat. When it was over, he just laid there, no strength left in his legs to maintain himself firmly – or even shakily – on the ground. "There you go…"

The man let Felix's wrists out of the shackles and worriedly watched him collapse on the basement's floor, having all the difficulties in the world to breathe. The man frowned. Why was it that hard for him to breathe? He admitted it was bad and deep injuries, but it usually didn't suffocate the punished.

The door opened revealing the master, who disgustingly snarled orders to his slave. "Whip the new lover and its partner. It refused- Oh! I see you've got the partner already." And he got out, just like that, as the man in black cringed. This kid just had been whipped thirty times already! He couldn't bear fifteen whiplashes more! Hell, the kid was only three or something. His little body couldn't endure that much!

But the master entered again, Vinum in his arms. Strangely enough, both of the children seemed to come to life, the rebel began to struggle, and the docile's entire body twitched. "What you still haven't began to whip the worker-"

The pig was interrupted by a gentle but broken little voice "Vi-Vinium…" It was Felix, eyes locked with his brother's widened ones. The Dominus made a face. "Vinium ? That's wrong." He wmirked. "From now on, you'll be called Vino." He placed a hand between the boy's legs, and, out of panic, the kid bit his arm.

"Little bitch! Whip them five times more!" The man in black cringed again; the little he had just whipped had great chances to die… The other – the lover, he noticed – was thrown on the ground, and he instantly rushed to his brother. The pig turned around. "Don't forget to 'wash' their back." And thus, he exited the room, angrily slamming the door.

The adult observed the exchange between the two brothers; they seemed to communicate without even talking. It seemed to be great, to have a brother. He had one, too. But when he was sold, it was without him. He shook his head, remembering his duty –the cruel task he had been put into- and handcuffed the lover, who was more than suspicious of his hands.

What was the Dominus thinking, such young kids…? He was his eldest slave; five years of work in this ghosts' house –he wasn't the first, but the other had died. And the more he did his job, the more he wanted to go to his long-lost friends, dead at war.

He made a face when his eyes fell on the docile one, his master was cruel and he was the tool. He was labeled as cruel, he too. But he couldn't go against his master's orders, except if he had death wishes – which he tended to have - but he could do something for the little worker. He took a sponge and put it into water – normal water – and carefully washed the boy's back. He would ask the gardener to find him some curative herbs – for them to not suffer too much, at least – "It'll hurt a lot boys… Vino, I want you to watch over your brother."

The lover huffed at him, obviously hurt – of course he would take care of his brother, what was this man thinking about?

He was scared of their states, after being beaten, especially his brother's. The man ruffled his hair after having washed Felix back – who had whimpered each time the sponge touched it.

He stood up, taking his whip, and 'punished' them both. He couldn't help but notice that the lover's voice was echoing way more against the walls then the worker's.

If Vino was clenching his fingers into a tight ball as he was whipped for the tenth time, he was definitely worried for his twin; he seemed to have lost all hopes. He was limping, only maintained in a standing position by the shackles on his wrists, his head bumped against the wall each time the whip bit his already injured skin. But he was still alive, wasn't he? He could still feel it, that he was still alive. His heart wasn't aching, so his brother was still alive.

It was just water over their back. Just salted water. The lover voluntarily hit his head on the wall, as if he was trying to win against the pain in his back by the pain in his head. The worker… the worker didn't do anything. He didn't move at all. The man bit his inferior lip, quickly pulled their wrists out of these damned shackles and rushed out of the basement, toward the garden.

He saw her gently cutting the grass. "Laetitia!" She looked at him, suspicious. "You have to help them! Help the kiddos! Please!" She stood up, shocked, and went to the torture room, without forgetting to give a death glare to the man. What she saw would be confined in her mind until her last breath. Who could wish such treatment for children? She subconsciously protected her unborn baby, wishing for it that it would never have to endure the same torture.

She didn't have to worry. The baby wouldn't.

She walked over them, and was almost surprised to see Vino glaring at her, protecting his badly beaten brother. She gently smiled, and knelt down. "It's just me, don't worry. I'm here to help you." He stopped glaring, seemingly confused. The beast humans contained deep within them had shot out of Vino's being. He obviously didn't let go of the protective stance, but at least, he didn't look like he was about to bite whoever approached his brother, now. "Can you walk?" He shook his head, hugging Felix even more. "Can I carry you?" He warily nodded, so she approached slowly, to not scare them and took them in their arms, before getting away from this damned room. She was going to the garden.

While they were being healed, Vino broke down, crying his heart out while trying to explain what happened. Everything was suffocating them. The master had tried to do weird things to him, and his brother would get whipped each time. It was hard to say, since he couldn't really talk properly yet. She began to sing. She began to sing a beautiful lullaby, which soothed both of their scared hearts. Yes, both. Felix was listening, but was too weak to do anything. The lady was nice, like a big sister. She was their big sister. She would protect them.

* * *

A month and a half later, both were used to the whiplashes already, and always ran to search love and comfort in their big sister. It was hard to take it by them only. But lately, they suspected her to be masochistic; she was having bad stomachache and she was happy about it.

Unfortunately, the Dominus had called her and talked to her – that was worrisome, since it wasn't for his pleasure – and when she came out, she was crying. It seemed that the roles were reversed, since the twins tried to sing for her. But that didn't work, unlike when it was them searching comfort; the proof? She cried even more. She cried for hours on their laps, and when she stopped, they knew it wasn't because she was comforted. No. It was obvious that she had no tears left to cry. After minutes of oppressing silence, she spoke and explained.

The Master wanted her to kill her baby once it was born. And he would give her two days to recover before, too. They did not know what to say, and even if they knew, their vocabulary was still too poor to formulate the words – it was limited to 'Are you okay?' 'What's wrong?' 'Are you hurt somewhere?'

Felix was suddenly hit by a bright idea, in one glance, he noticed his brother had, him too, had the same idea. They tried to explain it and managed.

Later that night, the lady began to sing a song, gently rubbing her pregnant belly. "_Yal-di ha-tov veh ha-rach…_ (My good and tender son) _Alttira veh al tif-chad… _(Don't be frightened, don't be scared)… _My son, I have nothing I can give, but this chance that you may live. I pray we'll meet again… If He will deliver us."_

* * *

One week had passed, and the Hebrew worker died. All the slaves prayed their gods for him to be safe, wherever his spirit was. The will and pride kept into the Hebrew lover – his brother and partner – had died with him, too. And, like many lovers in the house, he began to let the Dominus do anything he wanted with his body, not caring about anything anymore.

That night, the pretty lady decided to reveal the plan she had for the twins. Theirs was good, but she wanted them to do something. At first, they strongly refused, but when she revealed what she was going to do, it made them reluctantly accept. They had accepted, only for her to smile.

* * *

_Deliver Us_  
_Hear our prayer  
Deliver Us  
From despair_

It was almost time for them to go, the lady had lost her water. The baby would be out of her body in less than a day. Strangely, they weren't panicking, or worrying. They were just sitting outside, watching slaves going in and out, wondering how long they'd been working in this hell. Some looked rebellious, firmly standing on their two feet, full of pride. They guessed they were new. Others looked like ghosts, either by their eyes, or their bodies. The Hebrew lover had become one of the later. He was wandering pointlessly in the hallways. He was dead in the inside.

_These years of slavery grow,  
Too cruel to stand_

The baby was finally born. But the twins still had something to do. To the other slaves, it was normal, common, it happened frequently. Seeing one slave or another cracking under pressure, it was normal. But for them, it wasn't normal. Why a living thing was so… down? Worried, they went to the Hebrew lover, and managed to catch his attention.

As he looked down to them, they noticed a big blue-ish mark on his neck. Vino flinched, the Dominus had made him a mark like this, but he managed to get away before it became… dangerous… and scarier. The eyes of the Hebrew were lost in utter nothing. It wasn't like the ones of someone searching for vengeance, finding his will power into being a beast, no. It wasn't like the eyes of someone lost in nothing, thus making him _something_, either. He was an object, all them were. They were slaves and had different purposes, of course.

They smiled a little, remembering his pray for hope – where was that tenacious man they knew? Where was the one who always said that it was better to be whipped than fucked? His brother was dead; they could understand his feelings – if he still had some -; they couldn't bear the pressure it was to be one away from the other – and both of them were alive!

So, as a parting gift for the man that gave them hope, they both took a deep breath, and sang his chant. "_Deliver us, there's a land you promised us." _ These lyrics strangely made sense; hadn't he promised them a land where everyone was free? Where everyone smiled, laughed and danced with each others? "_Deliver us out of bondage" _Wasn't he the one that told that it was much better to be handcuffed to the torture's room's wall than to the Dominus' bed? _"Deliver us, to the promised land…_"

Once the chant was finished, they looked up to the man. It seemed that they had affected him. If he had died, he was the phoenix, always stood up, re-born, out of his ashes. He looked puzzled, it wasn't hard to read his thoughts. 'What was I doing?' 'Where was I, exactly?' He blinked before taking the child into an embrace, silently thanking them. "Be careful, I wish you luck." He said.

Careful, they would be. But nation's lives didn't resolve around safety at all. It was resolved around war. And to war, as every nation, they would be drew.

Luckiness was also a privilege nations couldn't afford.

* * *

The fresh air blew gently in their locks as the stars blinked at them in wonder. It was full moon outside, that night. The tailor had come in their cell, and gave them warm clothes, and a backpack, where there was food and other clothes - tiny, tiny clothes. She had told them that was the baby's. They nodded, and Felix put the bag on his back.

And now, they were waiting for the pretty lady to come. She wasn't long, but the look on her face was heart-breaking. The baby in her arms was fast asleep, gently snoring without a care in the world. "Are you okay?" Vino asked worriedly. She nodded, wipping her tears away. They began to walk to the river, where the port was.

As they were walking to the port, she began to sing when the baby shed tears, disliking the cold air against his nose. "_Hush now, my baby. Be still, love don't cry. Sleep as you're rocked by the stream. Sleep and remember my last lullaby. So I'll be with you when you dream_." Her voice was soft, caring and was also the most beautiful thing they'd heard. It always gave them strength to continue when their back hurted the most, and also now that they were walking, since their last beating was yesterday.

They arrived to the port, where a boat was waiting for them. She gave her baby to Vino, he put him in a piece of clothing around him, to support the newborn, and for Vino to be free-handed. "_River, o River, Flow gently for me._" The rebellious twin climbed in the boat, careful to not shake the baby too much. "_Such precious cargo you bear. Do you know somewhere he can live free?_" Her precious son was going away. Far, far away. "_River, deliver him there._"

She looked down to Felix, who was watching her with big, teary eyes. "You're not coming?" She shook her head. "I have to help other little slaves like you to escape from there." Felix had a scared glint in his eyes; the Dominus was going to be reaaaally mean to her! She knelt down and patted his head. "_Brother, you're safe now, and safe may you stay, for I have a prayer just for you; Grow baby brother, come back someday. Come and deliver us, too..._"

The little slave blinked and cried as he climbed in the boat. "You will be safe?"

"Of course I will, dummy." She sadly giggled. No, she wouldn't be. The boat flew soundlessly away, with her baby and her little brothers on board. She was well aware that death approached quickly. But at least, she would be with her love again.

_Deliver us__  
Send a shepherd to shepherd us__  
And deliver us, to the promised land.__  
Deliver us!_

.

_._

_.__  
They would come back. But centuries later, both of them changed for eternity._


End file.
